


Walking Into Spiderwebs

by Mountainside_possum



Series: The Last Fulcrum [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Depression, EVERYTHING GOES WRONG, Gen, Original Character(s), Sad with a Happy Ending, Spies & Secret Agents, Suicidal Thoughts, Survivors Guilt, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-12 21:13:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28642020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mountainside_possum/pseuds/Mountainside_possum
Summary: Captains Kallus and Andor have trained the finest Fulcrum agents and sent them across the galaxy...unaware they have all been sent to their deaths.
Relationships: Alexsandr Kallus/Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios, Kanan Jarrus/Hera Syndulla
Series: The Last Fulcrum [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2113188
Comments: 12
Kudos: 18





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Gray-Haired Warriors](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28572309) by [Mountainside_possum](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mountainside_possum/pseuds/Mountainside_possum). 



**_Prologue, one year before Battle of Yavin._ **

“You...want to assemble a network?” Mon Mothma’s voice edged on fascination, her hands folding in front of her. Alexsandr’s idea was a reach, sure, but the rest of the Alliance council had gathered to hear him out.

“Yes, senator. I do, three Fulcrum agents have been able to gather the amount of data they have in a relatively short period of time. Give more manpower, the Alliance could have information from across the galaxy.” Alexsandr nodded, knowing full well it was a privilege to be in the same room as these people whom he’d so sought to destroy only a year prior. Now, he was consulting with them on a possible Fulcrum network. 

“And, you alongside Captain Andor would be the leaders in this project?” Her eyes scanned to the younger man who was positioned at Alexsandr’s side, her head nodding slightly. 

“Yes, senator.” Andor spoke up, motioning with his hands. “Both me and Captain Kallus have field experience as Fulcrum operatives. Now is the time, with the need for information.” 

_ More blunt then I would have put it, but to the point.  _ Alexsandr’s thoughts always turned slightly bitter when Andor took the lead. He wasn’t sure which of them had a more sour personality, but it was certainly a running contest. A long silence followed, the council members turning to eachother and nodding. 

“Very well.” The regal senator said “We approve of this Fulcrum project. If newly trained Fulcrum agents can bring us desperately necessary data, then we must take the risk.” 

“Thank you, senator.” Alexsandr’s shoulders relaxed as the two were dismissed, his facing falling into a thoughtful rest. He turned to walk out of the command center, hearing Andor’s footsteps following closely behind. 

“Now the real work begins, you get that right?” Cassian sounded almost annoyed, however that was his permanent tone. It was something Alexsandr had to adapt to, yet even still he could not figure out his intelligence coworker. 

“Of course, Captain Andor. The real test will come when we meet the students.” He gave him a slight side smile, carefully folding his hands into his pockets. “I don’t doubt we’ll have volunteers, it is only a matter of who can handle the tasks.” 

“We’ll have to vet them…” Cassian sighed, scratching the back of his head. 

“That we shall, let’s go.” Kallus stepped forward, motioning for his comrade to follow, and together they made their way into the intelligence center. 


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alexsandr Kallus and his Fulcrum student, Clutter, learn more Fulcrum agents have died.

**_Six months prior to the Battle of Yavin._ **

Training and teaching had never been Alexsandr’s strong suit, he’d found that out the hard way with Lyste back during his less than honorable days. Yet, with the Fulcrum recruits he found it easier. He mainly focused on teaching espionage along with different interrogation tactics, with the odd bit of extra skills. Cassian taught the more practical physical skills. Together, they’d managed to form a well rounded group of twelve new Fulcrum agents. Most students were the same age he had been upon entering the IBS, it brought him relief to see young adults fighting for a more noble cause than he had. 

Alexsandr was working late, as he did most nights. Imperial chatter in the next sector over had increased, so there was more and more data to parse through every single day. Zeb had already joined him for a working dinner, scolding him as usual for working so late before leaving. Now, it was just him working under the golden of a lamp and the slight blue tint of his datapad. 

“I think they’re ready.” Andor’s voice was husky with sleep, seemingly showing he’d woken up not long ago. 

Alexsandr looked over at the man leaning against the door and carefully shrugged. “You believe the Fulcrums are ready for a field mission?”  _ They’ve been in training for only months, yet there is very little we can teach them now without them running into questions in the field.  _ “Do you truly believe they’re ready?” 

“What more can we give them, Kallus?” Cassian rubbed his eyes, carefully moving to lean against the other’s desk. “They aren’t learning anything else here, we have to let them go sometime or this whole thing was a waste.” He sounded frustrated, his tone low and serious. 

“I hate to agree with you, but you’re right.” Setting down his datapad, Alexsandr sighed. As much as he wanted to protect these young agents from the horrors they would see in the field, they’d been prepared. Arguably  _ more _ prepared than the ISB had ever had him be before a mission. “We’ll split them into groups of two, send them different directions. I…”

“You want to go with one, don’t you?” Crossing his arms, Andor seemed to be examining what his older counterpart was saying. He hadn’t openly objected, yet the expression on his face seemed less than pleased. 

“They’re my students.” 

“Our students.” Cassian replied, shooting down Kallus as the soul-bearer of responsibility. “But I won’t try to talk you out of it. You talk to them in the morning about it, and you can decide who’d need the added attention.” 

“You’re being sent out, aren’t you?” Andor never placed the responsibility of telling their students about new developments on Alexsandr, knowing that he’d get off track or somehow act too coldly. Usually Andor would actually discuss with their students, and Kallus would fill in the gaps. “New information?” 

“I’m being sent to the Ring of Kafrene, some sort of news surrounding a defector.” He shrugged, seeming uninterested in the mission at large. 

“Mhm, well we can never have too many defectors. You take care of the mission, I’ll deal with deploying the new agents.” Cassian nodded and began to turn away, about to leave his office, when Kallus added. “Oh, and Andor? Try to come back alive.” 

“Haven’t died yet.” He chuckled, and moved out of the information center. Neither were aware that was the last time they would ever see each other. 

**_Five months prior to Battle of Yavin_ **

Alexsandr had gone along with his two students, Finney and Clutter. Finney was a human man, aged twenty one who had been brash and reckless on the field yet somehow managed to blend in effortlessly in bars and gathering places. It was a good skill, a valuable skill, one Alexsandr had watched grow as the agent worked in the field. Clutter was almost the exact opposite, a young male mirialan who was best in the shadows. He’d managed to get information almost exclusively through the use of threats and intimation, which Alexsandr did not morally condone but understood the practical usage of. 

As much as he hated to admit it, Alexsandr had grown close to them during this mission on Tatooine. Finney was incredibly funny, and almost always lighthearted, and Clutter always had something new to tell Alexsandr about. He cared about them deeply, seeing them almost like adopted sons at times. That is what made it so hard when Finney died, caught in the line of sight of an Imperial flame trooper. He’d stood no chance, there was no way to heal the wounds that had covered most of the man’s body. Even with Clutter’s eclectic medical knowledge, and all the bacta patches they could find, he died only days later. It was over his makeshift, desert grave they now stood. 

“Captain Kallus?” Clutter’s voice was edged with what sounded like fear, or anxiety. 

“Yes, Clutter?” Alexsandr sighed, knowing whatever conversation Clutter wanted to have was going to leave him feeling worse than he already did. He’d sworn to himself not a single Fulcrum would die on these missions, but it seemed like he was wrong. 

“What do we do now?” 

Taking a deep breath, Kallus’s shoulders shifted. He couldn’t quite make eye contact with him, he couldn’t let him see just how uncertain Finney’s death had made him. “We continue the mission, come on.” Turning around, Alexsandr climbed onto his speeder and waited for Clutter to do the same. Mentally, he added;  _ Good bye, Finney.  _

They both reached their hideout in record time, not wanting to be trapped in the desert at night. The cave where they kept the communication equipment had also become a home for this mission, safe outside of where Imperial patrols would check. Clutter went inside first, doing a quick sweep to check for intruders. A slight tinge of pride hit Alexsandr as he watched his student do exactly what he had taught, it made him feel like less of a failure for what had happened to Finney. 

Settling down for the night, Kallus donned the headset connected to their main communications set and began their nightly transmission to Yavin Four. “Fulcrum one to base, status update. Down one man. Imperial activity increased. That is all.” 

“Copy that Fulcrum one. Fulcrum two and Fulcrum six reported casualties.” The connection ended after the short message had been delivered, but Alexsandr was frozen in place. At least three of his students had died that day. Would they have died if he was there, could he had saved them. The world seemed to swirl around him, his heart aching and threatening to burst out of his chest. 

“Captain?” Clutter was at his side shortly after the transmission ended, ready to hear the new message delivered from command. “What did they say?” 

“Counting Finney, we are down three Fulcrum agents today.” He didn’t want to say it. He didn’t want to see how Clutter’s face fell, that look of desperate fear he remembered himself making on Onderon after the massacre of his first squad. “This doesn’t change anything, we continue the mission.” 

“Yes, sir.” Clutter nodded, eyes shifting nervously. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, and May The Force Be With You! 
> 
> Follow Me!   
> Twitter: @imperialsimp  
> Tumblr: mountainsidepossum


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A terrifying discovering sends Zeb on a journey to find Kallus and bring him back to safety.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: Detailed Corpse, Vomiting.

**_Four Months, Two weeks till the Battle Of Yavin_ **

Zeb, as usual, oversaw security of the main spaceport on Yavin four. It was a boring, mostly thankless job, yet it allowed for him to take him mind off the loneliness Kallus’s absence left him with. That human had somehow found a way inside his heart, and opened him like a book to be studied. Of course, just as their relationship was ramping up was when he had to leave. It was frustrating, yet they were both a part of something larger than a potential relationship. It would simply have to wait. 

Overhead, the roar of an incoming transport ship brought Zeb back from his thoughts. This was a scheduled delivery, a set of smugglers who had agreed to help the Alliance for a fee. Their alliship allowed for the Alliance to get materials from inside Imperial blockaded sectors, it was mutually beneficial to say the least. Like normally, a few officers would need to check the cargo for secretly placed transponders. Imperial spies were everywhere, and you could never be too careful. 

“On time like always.” Zeb offered the two smugglers, two twi’lek men, a professional smile before motioning for two of his security staff to go inside to check on the cargo and log it. 

“We almost weren’t, the stop on Crait was almost tracked by Imps. Had to make a few extra jumps to make sure we weren’t followed.” The smuggler huffed, seeming thoroughly annoyed with the extra effort it had taken. 

“Captain!” Before Zeb could respond, one of his staff yelled out. He was guiding a crate, and spoke. “Sorry to interrupt Captain, but this isn’t on the manifest.” 

“Where did you get this?” Zeb pointed towards the crate, the fur on the back of his neck standing up. Something was deeply wrong here, but he couldn’t exactly pinpoint what. 

“Must’ve been one of the first stops, near the Core Worlds based on the crate. Which is weird...we wrote everything down. We may run illegally but that doesn’t mean we’re messy. Open it.” He motioned to his partner, leaning over the crate slightly as the other pressed the buttons to decompress the cargo. 

Zeb had his hands on his bo-rifle, ready to fire on whatever could possibly be inside. The Empire had sent out search droids before, deadly machines, and Zeb wasn’t about to let one discover Yavin. However, what was inside was a very different message, one that punched Zeb directly in the stomach and pulled the air from his lungs. “Ashla help us…” 

Curled up with bound hands and feet, rotting, was one of the Fulcrum students. She had been a woman in her early twenties, with long red hair and a glowing smile, sent to a Core World which Zeb couldn’t name from memory. He remembered Kallus saying it would be a death sentence, and he was right. Her hair had been messily cut, some of it splayed across the bottom of the crate itself. Zeb knew very little about human decomposition, yet the gray sunken tone of her skin and the way her body seemed to stretch towards the floor told him she was beyond saving. Burned into her cheek was the Fulcrum symbol, barely sloughing off the rest of her face. 

He almost emptied the contents of his stomach then and there, which the two smugglers already had. He turned towards one of his stunned staff, speaking. “Go alert Intelligence, we have a massive problem. I’m going to the council directly. You two stay here, we gotta question you on this.” Zeb felt almost apologetic, the two seemed just as shocked as they were. 

Turning on his heels, Zeb marched himself towards the main halls.  _ What if they already have Kal? What if he’s on his way like her, rotting in some spaceport, sent as an Imperial message?  _ Zeb wanted to cry, he wanted to scream. Bursting his way into the council room, he caught the attention of Bail Organa and Mon Mothma who were in the middle of a conversation. It seemed like Organa was going to say something, possibly on how they were in the middle of a discussion, but both were silent after one glimpse at Zeb’s face. 

“Captain”, Mon Mothma said softly, “is there an issue?” 

Zeb still felt stunned, but he nodded. It took him a moment to actually form the words, but just started. “There’s a dead Fulcrum on the land platform.”  _ Kriff it Zeb, you could’ve worded that better.  _

“Pardon?” Organa took a step forward, his face twisted in concern. 

“One of the smugglers, they had an unmarked container, and...and it’s one of the agents, she’s…” He felt sick saying anymore, shaking his head sadly. “It’s the Empire, I just know it, they’ve branded her’n everything. They’re goin’ after the Fulcrums.” 

The two senators looked between each other, nodding, before Mon Mothma spoke. “They must be alerted, we will send a group to examine the remains.” She carefully, yet with a sense of urgency, left the room down the hall. 

Zeb’s heart was beating wildly, his anxiety pumping his blood through his veins. He needed to hear back from Kallus, he needed to know he had survived. He needed to pull him out before it was too late, and for that he needed the  _ Ghost _ and her crew. His family, he needed his family. Tapping his comlink, he attempted to get in touch with Hera as he made his way back towards the airfield. “Hera, come in.” 

“I’m here Zeb, what’s going on? There's a crew swarming on the cargo dock.” Hera’s voice sounded concerned, but mostly confused. It wasn’t upcoming to congratulate a welcoming crew, but Zeb she’d see the difference between celebration and a crisis. 

  
“A Fulcrum just got sent back in, in a  _ crate _ . We gotta go find Kal.” He was fully running, not fully aware of his surroundings, just trying his best to reach the Ghost before everything went wrong and he never saw Kallus again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, and May The Force Be With You!

**Author's Note:**

> Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, and May The Force Be With You! 
> 
> Follow Me!  
> Twitter: @imperialsimp  
> Tumblr: mountainsidepossum


End file.
